Application for the Amendment of Birth Registration

In accordance with the provisions of the Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1992 a South African citizen may apply to amend his/her personal
information in the Population Register by virtue of a formal application for personal amendment.


The guidelines discussed hereafter are to be followed for the different circumstances which give rise to applications for amending a birth registration.

Registration of a child:

The re-registration of a child and the insertion of the biological fathers particulars into the birth register of his child is required where the child
was previously registered as born out of wedlock. A child previously registered as born out of wedlock and where the parents marry after the
registration of the child, may thereafter be re-registered as born within wedlock.

It is important to note that application for corrections, insertion of the biological fathers particulars (where the parents are not
married), change of forenames, change of the surname of a major, change of the surname of a minor, is different and these
guidelines should not be followed.

The following documentation must be submitted to any Home Affairs domestic office to amend a birth registration:

a) completion of the Form BI-1682 accessed on www.LawyersEzyFind.co.za.
Both parents must sign the Form in the presence of a Commissioner of Oaths. If the mother refuses her consent to the
amendment, the father may apply to a High Court for exemption of the mother’s consent;

b) proof of the marriage between the parents of the child;

c) a new Notice of Birth Form must be completed which can also be accessed on the above website;

d) copies of the identity documents, passports, marriage certificate and/or birth certificates of the parent(s) should be submitted.

Fees applicable for the Amendment of Birth Registration:

Free of charge.
Altering the surname of a minor in terms section 25 of births and Deaths Registration Act

An application to change the surname of a minor can be brought in the following circumstances:

• If a child is born out of wedlock and the mother marries a person other than the childs biological father and wishes to
change the child’s surname to that of her husband.

• If a mother, after her divorce from or the death of her husband (father of child), wishes to change the childs surname to her
maiden surname or to another surname she bore legally; or if she has remarried, to the surname of her new husband.

• If a child is born out of wedlock but registered under the biological fathers surname and the mother wishes to change
the childs surname to her surname.

• If a minor is under the care of a guardian and the guardian wishes to change the childs surname to his/hers.

• Other situations not mentioned above where a good and sufficient reason for the change exists.

Applications must be duly and accurately completed by the applicant(s) for the change of surname

Requirements for a valid application: • The natural fathers written consent, unless waived by a competent court, is a statutory requirement in the case where
the child was born in wedlock.

• The mother’s husband, whose surname the child is to assume, must also give his written consent to the assumption.

• Both the natural parents’ written consent is required as well as a good and sufficient reason for the change must be furnished in writing.

Assuming a different surname in terms of Section 26 of Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1992)

A woman may assume her husbands surname, or revert to her maiden surname or a prior surname she legally bore. Moreover, since 1997 a
woman may also join her surname with that of her husbands as a double-barrelled surname.

No application to the Department of Home Affairs is necessary in these instances, but to enable the Department to update the Population
Register, women should notify the Department of such changes in writing.

Apart from the aforesaid exclusions, no adult (major) may assume another surname unless such change of surname has been approved by
the Director-General of Home Affairs and has been published in the Government Gazette. Applications in this regard may be lodged at any
domestic Home Affairs office or any South African embassy, mission or consulate abroad.

Applications must be duly and accurately completed and a good and sufficient reason for the change must be furnished in writing.

Changing gender

In terms of section 27(A) read with the provisions of the Alteration of Sex Description and Sex Status Act 49 of 2003 Applications can be made by
persons who have undergone a sex change operation or medical treatment resulting in their gender reassignment. In such cases two medical reports are required:

1. one by the medical practitioner who applied the procedure or medical treatment or by a medical practitioner who has
experience in such procedures or treatments, and


2. a report by a second medical practitioner who has independently examined the application to established his/her gender.

Intersexed persons

In this category, the applicant must submit:

• a report by a medical practitioner corroborating that the applicant is intersexed, as well as

• a report by qualified psychologist or social worker corroborating that the applicant is living and has lived stably and satisfactorily,
for an unbroken period of at least two years in the gender role corresponding to the sex description under which he or she seeks to be registered

Applications must be completed on the required Form, or a written request, accompanied by the required medical reports

Rectifying the date of birth, gender or place of birth in the birth register

Should any information contained within a document issued by the Department of Home Affairs be incorrect as a result of a departmental
error, the error will be corrected free of charge.

However, if the mistake was on the part of the applicant, correction of the information will have to be applied for by completing the Form
and the prescribed fee must be paid. Submission of proof of the correct information is a prerequisite in such instances.